Indian consumer confidence down in Q3, but highest globally

In the third quarter of 2012, India and Indonesia (119) reported the highest index scores globally, followed by the Philippines (118). Photo: Mint

New Delhi: Consumer confidence in India in the third quarter of 2012 has gone down compared with last year and 62% of Indian respondents believe the country is going through an economic recession this quarter, according to provider of information and insights Nielsen.

In the same quarter last year, only 44% of respondents had felt India was going through an economic recession.

Yet, Indians, along with Indonesians, continue to be the most upbeat globally, according to Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index.

The levels of optimism reported by Indian respondents this quarter are three points lower than the third quarter in 2011, where India was leading the global sentiment at 121 points, Neilsen said in a statement.

“More than three in five online respondents (62%) said they believe India is going through an economic recession this quarter,” it added.

In the third quarter of 2012, India and Indonesia (119) reported the highest index scores globally, followed by the Philippines (118), it added.

Commenting on the findings, Nielsen India region president Piyush Mathur said: “While the second quarter of the year indicated growing anxiousness among Indian consumers, the third quarter echoes that sentiment across key parameters for the Indian consumer today.”

Although the sentiment of rising inflation combined with other economic and personal pressures have taken a toll on consumer confidence, the Indian consumer seems to have reconciled with the challenges, he added.

“In a typically resilient fashion, they have adopted various strategies to counter inflation through a much keener effort to seek better deals at the point of sale and by timing bigger ticket purchases,” Mathur said.

According to the latest findings, 77% of online respondents in India are optimistic about their employment, which is down from 81% from the same quarter last year, but consistent with the second quarter of 2012.

“Globally, Indian online consumers (77%), followed by online consumers in the Philippines (72%) and Thailand (72%), are the most optimistic about their job prospects in the next 12 months,” Neilsen said.